Carne deshebrada – shredded beef with potatoes, tomato and chilli

Ingredients for 4 portions

• 700 gFlank steak, in 3–4 pieces
• ≈ 1.5 lWater
• ½Yellow onion, in one piece
• 2 clovesGarlic, for the broth
• 2Bay leaves
• to tasteSalt
• 400 gPotato, in 1 cm dice
• 1Yellow onion, chopped
• 2Jalapeño peppers, finely chopped
• 1 cloveGarlic, chopped
• 4Tomatoes, chopped
• 3 tbspRapeseed oil
• 1 mlCumin
• to tasteBlack pepper

On the side

• 450 gRefried beans, 1 tin
• 8Tortillas

Method

1. Put the beef in a pan with the water, the piece of onion, the garlic for the broth, the bay leaves and some salt. Bring to the boil and skim.
2. Cover and simmer over a low heat for 1 hour 30 minutes, until the beef falls apart easily. (About 35 minutes in a pressure cooker.)
3. Meanwhile, peel the potatoes and cut them into 1 cm dice, and chop the onion, chillies, garlic and tomatoes.
4. Lift out the beef, let it cool for a few minutes and pull it into fine shreds with two forks. Keep a cupful of the broth.
5. Heat the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and fry the potatoes, stirring, for 8 minutes, until they start to colour.
6. Add the onion, chillies and garlic and soften for 3 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes, until they break down.
7. Stir in the shredded beef, the cumin and the reserved broth. Cover and cook over a low heat for 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until the potatoes are tender and the beef is juicy. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Meanwhile, warm the refried beans in a small pan and the tortillas in a dry frying pan; wrap the tortillas in a tea towel.
9. Serve the beef with the beans and the warm flour tortillas.

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